Hey there! I’m Leah, I’m 24 years old and almost have my 1987 G20 with 60,000 miles on it. It’s all stock right now, with the swivel seats and fold down bench seat. I’m planning on using it as is for a few months while continuing to save and purchase things to strip it and build it out. My plan is to hit the road in the spring 2025, along with my little dog.
I’m fresh out of a long, toxic relationship and am in a wonderful place to go off and do my own thing.
The build itself I’m quite excited for. I’ll have help from my dad and friends who are carpenters and cabinet makers. The only thing I’m debating still is power. Is solar really the way to go? Because I wouldn’t mind running everything off gas. I’m in Florida, so an air conditioner is a necessity, and I need hot water sometimes due to my chronic illness. Wiring and equipment for electrical is not something I or my dad are very knowledgeable on.
What’s your favorite toilet?
What’s your favorite ac?
How many of you have a winch for when you get stuck?
I’d love any tips or advice from solo females, especially.
I love converting conversion vans into campers because it’s so simple, easy, and cheap. I just remove the middle seat behind the driver, and replace it with the kitchen & bathroom. Keeping the original floor/walls/ceiling saves a ton of time, money, & frustrations.
Being power frugal instead of an expensive electrical system is a wise choice. My main power use is charging my laptop, phone, lights, and a fan. 99.9% of the time, my house battery is charged via an isolator while driving. I don’t have solar. I do have a cheap gas generator as a backup plan.
A/C is going to require either a generator or shore power. I much prefer low/no power swamp coolers myself. The powered ones use basically no more power than a fan alone, and the liquid candle powered ones require no power at all. My swamp coolers kept me comfortable for many Miami summers.
I prefer using fuel instead of power whenever possible myself. Propane is too dangerous for my taste, and a royal pain to refill. So my current fuel of choice is cooking oil. ~$8.00/gallon at Walmart, and a gallon will last me at least a month powering my heating, cooling, cooking, and fridge/freezer. I converted a used 3-way RV fridge/freezer ($50) to run on cooking oil instead of propane. Basically it’s powered by a liquid candle.
Cheap, easy, & reliable are high on my priority list, along with backup plans for everything.
Cheers!
"Everybody has excuses, but the wise have jobs & money." ~ Money Matters